Tag: karmic

In Karmic Astrology the chart is seen as a painting of past lives, the beliefs & experiences you bring into this life. Your natal chart doesn’t dictate what kind of person you are or life you’ll live. It does give you insight into yourself, and the kind of growth and lessons you are inviting into this life.

In some ways all of our lives have the same purpose: to grow spiritually, love and be loved. We just happen to each get there in our own way, exploring our talents and meeting our challenges. Astrology can be a huge help along the way as we journey towards self-acceptance and self-discovery.

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Quincunx is such a funny word to me. In Astrology, it’s an aspect formed when pieces are at a 150 degree angle with one another. I use an orb of 3 degrees, so that’s an angle of 147-153 degrees. Inconjunct is also used for this and means the same thing. I consistently use quincunx though, partly because it just sounds odd and also because (for me) the unusualness of the word conveys some of the unusualness of the aspect itself.

In karmic astrology, a quincunx is referred to as the karmic neutralizer. Experiences in other life times have caused the person to learn to shut down parts of themselves. The pieces tend to neutralize each other, so that when one of them is receiving focus, the other tends to shut down.

Let’s look at moon quincunx mars. The moon is emotions, nurturance, food, family and mars is physicality, sexuality, ambitions, drive. People with this aspect are likely to struggle with balancing getting emotional needs met and pursuing ambitions. It can be hard to develop a sexual relationship that is nurturing and emotionally rewarding. They often eat in ways that are not healthy for their bodies. When one of these energies is getting their attention, the other energy is shut down and it’s hard to integrate the two.

All is not lost with a quincunx. When one shows up in a natal chart, think of it as a flashing red light. There are many life lessons connected to it, and understanding it will lead to huge growth. It’s almost like a call for help, trying to grab your attention. The signs and houses can be very insightful in helping you to understand both your karmic history getting you to this point (signs) and the current life focus (houses) that needs your attention.

I don’t believe your natal chart determines the life you will live. It’s a painting of your karmic past and reveals the bags you packed when you came into this life. Those bags contain experiences and beliefs that show up as talents, challenges and lessons. If you have a quincunx, get honest with yourself about it and face what it’s telling you. Even if you do see that you are shutting down, denying or compartmentalizing parts of your life you can grow and change.

However you have come to view your life, you can learn to see it differently.

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In Karmic Astrology, the sun in your natal chart represents your ego, your personality in this life. It’s who you aspire to be this time. It is your sense of sanity and of being grounded in this life. When anything in your natal chart is conjunct your sun, then that energy is also bonded with your ego and sense of self. It is hard to separate your identity from that piece and anything connected to that piece is taken very personally.

The sign, house placement, degree and rest of the chart all impact how the conjunction is expressed, but here are a few general notes on these conjunctions.

If you have Moon conjunct the sun, then you identify with your emotions. You don’t separate who you are from how you feel. Your need to express your feelings is strong and you feel deeply.

With Mercury conjunct the sun, your beliefs and mind are bonded with your ego. You identify with your mind and intellect. You need to believe you are rational and when someone does not agree with what you believe, your sense of self can feel invalidated.

Venus conjunct the sun, you identify with your values and sense of beauty. You feel unstable when you are not living in accordance with your values and caring for your appearance is part of how you define yourself.

Mars conjunct the sun, you define yourself by action. Your ambitions and passions ground you. You are what you do, and being able to take action is a very important aspect of self-expression for you.

Saturn conjunct the sun, you identify with security. Saturn rules time and space, so you need to have limits, boundaries and routines. Your sense of loyalty is part of your identify.

Jupiter conjunct the sun, you identify with possibility, growth and hope. Travel and personal growth are part of your identify. You identify with your personal ethics and judgments.

Uranus conjunct the sun, you identify with the eccentric and a sense of individualism while still feeling connected to community and the cosmos. Parts of you will always be somewhat unpredictable, though they will always make sense to you.

Neptune conjunct the sun, you identify with your intuition, compassion, creativity and a need to escape. It’s important to find a way to balance these energies, otherwise you can empathize with others to the point of losing your sense of self.

Pluto conjunct the sun, you identify with your will. Control helps you to feel grounded and you have a great capacity for personal transformation. You experience a deeper sense of empowerment as you learn to align your will with that of the divine, something larger than yourself.

If you have anything conjunct the sun in your chart, read about that energy and then think about how you identify with it. Think about how that energy is part of your sense of sanity, how it makes you feel grounded. It can give you great insight into a choice of career or what you need to feel safe and secure. Also remember that most people do not have something conjunct their sun, and have an ability to separate the energy you identify so strongly with from their ego and personality.

If you find yourself in frequent conflict with someone, ask yourself if there isn’t something you are taking so very personally. Remind yourself that a person may disagree with your beliefs, sense of justice, need to take action for a cause etc., and in no way intend to come across as invalidating who you are or how you should define your sense of self.

When the moon is in the Seventh HouseAnd Jupiter aligns with MarsThen peace will guide the planetsAnd love will steer the starsThis is the dawning of the age of Aquarius …

In Karmic Astrology, the houses are areas of life experience and show focus for this life. The house of the moon, shows the area of life that (coming in) you want to invest in emotionally. It is the area where you feel most at home in this life, where you feel most able to get your emotional needs met. It’s where you came in wanting to nurture and be nurtured, shows lessons around family and mothering and gives insight to all things related to the feminine energy within you.

Moon in the first house has an emotional investment in self and the body. Most women with this placement will become pregnant at least once in this lifetime. Massage therapists and body workers often have moon in the first. There is a strong emotional connection to the body.

Moon in the second has an emotional investment in stuff. Feeling that you have resources, managing your resources (food, clothing, shelter, money, etc) is very important with this placement. There is often a connection to growing your own food and feeling connected to land as a resource.

Moon in the third has a connection to communication. It’s important to express yourself and to feel heard. Sibling relationships are often very important, in part because of the early lessons in communicating. You feel at home with books, information, the Internet, social media and exchange of ideas.

Moon in the fourth is about home and family. It’s about family history, homestead, parenting and being connected to a place. You have a strong need to nurture people in your home and feel nurtured by your home. There is a need to parent, either your own children or to have some kind of responsibility similar to parenting in your life.

Moon in the fifth is about creativity, fun, romance and kids. Having creative outlets is important for your emotional health. Performing, working with kids or doing work that brings fun and joy to people’s lives is often very satisfying.

Moon in the sixth is about music, health and healing. Nurturing yourself and others is important to your emotional well being. Feeling that you are fulfilling your karmic debts and having a job that is emotionally rewarding is important to you.

Moon in the seventh is about relationships. You always want to have a partner or best friend in your life. Working with people one on one is important to you. Feeling that things are equal and balanced helps you to feel emotionally nurtured and satisfied.

Moon in the eight is about intimacy. You need deep emotional connections. People trust you with their secrets and confide in you. They also trust you with resources and seek your counsel. The eighth house is about mystery, transformation, and being willing to go into dark places.

Moon in the ninth is about travel and higher learning. Exploring, discovering, personal growth and learning are emotionally fulfilling. Your are at home teaching and deriving knowledge out of information.

Moon in the tenth is about career and your place in the world. You need to feel some level of recognition for the work you do. It’s important to you to feel like you emotionally experience and understand your contribution to the world.

Moon in the eleventh is about friendships, organizations and group activities. You need to be active in causes and feel like you have a connection to groups of others. Being involved and having a sense of community nurtures you and helps you feel at home.

Moon in the twelfth is about escape and privacy. It includes organizations and places where people are removed from mainstream society. It is the dreamy, mystical, part of our lives as well as the closet we stick things we want out of view. Whether you’re at home in a comfy chair for some quiet time, or taking a walk out in nature, you feel emotionally renewed by being able to escape the world.

There are lots of online calculators for your natal chart. You need your time, date and location of birth. Once you have that, look and see where the moon is then google that house. Each house rules an area of life experience, and the house of the natal chart will give you some insight into what nurtures you and feeds you emotionally.

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Last year I finally updated the look of my website www.KarmicAstrology.com. I started the site in 1998 and had kept the look and feel the same for 10 years. I added a few things, but kept most of the content the same. Finally I’m getting around to updating more of the content.

I’ve updated the ordering procedures and hopefully the process is clearer. I make sure that I have all the information that I need from the client and that we can agree on a time to talk, before I accept payment. My process is a little different than an online shopping cart. I’ve added a form to help make it a little easier.

I’ve updated the FAQ to explain why I use Skype and PayPal. Since I’m using Skype I can easily record the call. That means clients can now get a digital recording of the reading mailed to them on CD. I can more easily accept clients outside of the USA, since the Skype rates worldwide are really inexpensive. Also, PayPal can process payments from outside the USA and I like that everyone’s transactions are secure. It’s also faster, so I receive payment faster and clients don’t have to wait as long for their appointments.

I also added a short (about one minute) audio message on the readings page. Hopefully it gives anyone that listens more of a sense of my work.

The site now feels more up-to-date and hopefully my process is clear. If you get a chance, take a peek and let me know what you think. All comments are welcome.

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In the past two blog entries, I’ve taken a brief look at the Moon and the Ascendant, and considered how each of these two pieces are colored by the twelve signs. Today I’m going to begin an explanation of how the meaning of the Astrological signs are derived, by discussing the elements.

The signs are derived from four elements and three modalities. The four elements are fire, earth, air and water. The three modalities are cardinal, fixed and mutable. Identifying all the possible combinations of these elements and modalities results in the twelve signs of the Zodiac. For example, there is a fire sign that is cardinal, a fire sign that is fixed, and a fire sign that is mutable. The same is true for each of the remaining three elements, thus providing a total of twelve different ways these elements and modalities may be paired.

To begin our illustration, we’ll first look at the four elements. Fire is active and initiating energy. It seeks to create experience and take action. The fire signs are Aries, Leo and Sagittarius. Earth is stabilizing concrete energy, and naturally tends to create form and solidify human experience. Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn are the three earth signs. Air is changeable kinetic energy, and expands to create discovery and innovation. Gemini, Libra and Aquarius make up the Air trio. Water is steadily flowing energy that moves to shape and deepen any experience. Water is the element of Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces.

Each sign belongs to one of these elements, and each sign is connected to the other signs of the same element. To demonstrate this point, we’ll now look at Mercury in the elements. Mercury symbolizes the rational mind and how we communicate via language. It’s what we believe “makes sense.” Mercury in our chart shows how we think and how we learn. People that have Mercury in the fire signs are people that need first hand experience to learn. They can’t just read about it or hear a lecture. A fire Mercury also needs to connect thought with action in some way. Kids with Mercury in a fire sign usually do better when their learning environment gives them the opportunity to experience the lesson rather than simply to be taught the lesson.

People with Mercury in earth signs seek a practical application for what they are taught. If information isn’t useful, then it rarely makes sense to these types. An earth Mercury needs to connect thought with some type of form. Kids with Mercury in an earth sign usually do better when they are taught how they can use what they are learning to create something new or improve something already established, rather than learning for the sake of learning.

Mercury in the air signs gives us people that crave knowledge and information, and love to learn for the sake of learning. An air Mercury can read a book or engage in conversation on a subject that s/he will never actively pursue, just for the excitement of discovery and for the satisfaction that comes from sharing and exchanging ideas. Kids with Mercury in an air sign usually do better when they have access to books and discussions that allow them to share ideas.

A water Mercury needs to feel emotionally connected to learn. This connection can be to a teacher or to some internal desire that drives the person to want to learn. Mercury in water often feels a need to derive some sense of control and/or to feel that the knowledge is empowering. Kids with Mercury in water usually do better when they have a positive relationship with their teachers and learning environment, and feel as though what they are learning is personally enriching.

Next time, I’ll use Mercury to take a look at the three modalities, and explore how these combine with the elements to differentiate the twelve signs.

The Ascendant, also called the Rising Sign, (both terms mean exactly the same thing) is the sign that appears on the eastern horizon, relative to where you were born, at the moment you were born. It is referred to as the lens through which you see the world, because it is your initial view of life, as well as the mask or surface personality that you develop in childhood for dealing with the world. The Ascendant also describes the kind of family pattern you were born in to, and the kind of child your parents wanted. As with every piece in a chart, you look at the sign, the degrees, and aspects etc., but even just looking at the sign can provide insight into the meaning of the Ascendant in your chart.

Those with Aries Rising often end up in families where they continue to be treated like a child, making the transition to adulthood difficult. Aries Ascendants usually take life at face value, and come in to learn to take risks, be spontaneous, and develop a clear sense of individuality. Taurus Rising is generally told to have specific goals and to be aware of when it is worthwhile to make an effort. Taurus Ascendants usually develop a strong appreciation for the sensual, physical side of life, and come in to learn how to conserve resources, pace oneself, and feel at ease.

Those with Gemini Rising are generally told to not be a burden, and to learn to tell people what they want to hear. Gemini Ascendants generally have strong verbal skills and are very adaptable, and come in to this life to learn to develop a lighter touch in life. Cancer Rising is often raised to be a parent and nurture others. Cancer Ascendants generally know how to stay in control, and often must learn how to ask for and receive help from others.

Leo Rising is usually told that it is important to look good and dress right to succeed in life. Leo Ascendants are often drawn to serving the greater good, and have a keen eye for improving themselves and others. Their lessons often involve learning to be happy. Virgo Rising is usually told to work hard and to pay attention to detail. Virgo Ascendants often have a talent with math, music or healing and come in to learn how to derive fulfillment through work and service.

Libra Rising usually grows up being told to be fair, play nice, and to be aware of what other people need. Libra Ascendants know how to accommodate others, and are here to learn balance in life and in one on one relationships. Scorpio Rising often indicates a family that kept secrets and had trouble setting consistent priorities. Scorpio Ascendants understand vulnerability, and often have come in to this life to learn to be decisive and become comfortable with choice.

Sagittarius Rising is usually told to be self reliant and to focus only on the good in any situation. Sagittarius Ascendants often project a lot of confidence and faith, though they are usually here to learn how to trust. Capricorn Rising is usually told to grow up immediately and often doesn’t have time to be a kid. Capricorn Ascendants usually appear to be very grounded even though their lessons often include learning how to achieve stability in life.

Aquarius Rising is told to be observant and to be a team player. Aquarius Ascendants generally hear a call to social consciousness and come in to learn how to develop connections with others that include intimacy. Pisces Rising is told to blend in and to have compassion. Pisces Ascendants usually have a chameleon like quality and their lessons often include learning that they cannot save anyone accept themselves.

What is your Rising Sign? Check it out for clues about your family patterns, and the kinds of masks you wear in the world.

Books and magazines talk a lot about sun signs, since they are usually easy to figure out if you know your birthday. In Karmic Astrology, your sun sign is your personality’s ego, your sense of identity in this lifetime. It shows how you identify yourself, and ground yourself to this lifetime.

Your moon sign, however, is more generally descriptive of how you act and react. The moon is the style we use to relate emotionally and it shows our emotional karmic history. The house the moon is in shows the area of life in which you are most often cultivating your emotional growth, as well as the area in which you feel at home. Aspects to the moon show how you access your feelings.

Aries moons need to experience life first hand and learn by doing. Taurus moons need physical pleasure and do best when they are comfortable. Restless Gemini moons need variety and so they are in perpetual motion. Cancer moons need emotional security and like to be in control. Leo moons need to be feel valued and feel admired and to serve the greater good. Virgo moons need to feel they are of service, and usually have a chaotic sort of order in life.

Libra moons are always seeking balance and a way to make life fair. Scorpio moons create intensity and have much to learn and teach regarding choice. Sagittarius moons need space, and continually rejuvenate their faith. Capricorn moons need structure and flourish when their home base is solid. Aquarius moons need the unexpected, and relate to those in all walks of life. Pisces moons are gentle dreamers, and tend to blur the lines between illusion and reality.

What’s your moon sign? Check it out for clues on how you can feel more emotionally responsive and fulfilled.